Michael Mann heading into battle with Agincourt

Helming the book adaptation

Michael Mann has officially signed on to bring Bernard Cornwell’s novel Agincourt to the big screen.

Though a start date has yet to be announced, Mann will make the film over at Luc Roeg’s Independent film company, while Benjamin Ross is scripting.

Agincourt follows the same battle that served as the central clash in William Shakespeare’s Henry V . The focus this time is on young archer Nicholas Hook, a wanted man who fights as a mercenary in France.

Upon returning to England, he’s snapped up by new King Henry V, and takes up the longbow again by royal command to fight against the French.

When the English campaign suffers devastating losses, Hook and his archers become the king’s last resort in a horrific battle.

With Mann having taken on a raft of diverse projects over the years, it’ll be fascinating to see how he handles a historical epic like Agincourt .

If it’s anything like a historical version of Heat , this will be something really special indeed.